Woven is an interactive installation, crafted to deliver key Maori values by experiencing them first hand.
Situated in an open community space, Woven welcomes in the public to participate in values through the art of doing, through raranga (weaving) volunteers open themselves up to kaitiakitanga (guardianship) through an appreciation for the potential of natural materials, and manaakitanga (hospitality and welcoming) through face to face learning, and engaging conversation. In this space, those who may be unfamiliar with Māori culture find themselves drawn into discussion, collaboration, and understanding for what lies underneath.
Within this project, I led a student design team, (Russell Hooton-Fox, Case Dakota, Jack Whitehead, Desmond Cheong) We built Woven from the ground up, not only designing its tone of voice, copywriting brand styling and resulting collateral, but the workshop experience itself, as well as its contents.
As a cultural project this is something I've been immensely proud to be a part of. We involved Māori mentors from the start, the team found themselves welcomed, and our concept was guided and nurtured from start to finish. We set a standard of respect, communication, and collaboration, and through this we were able to innovate, while remaining honest.
Russell Hooton-Fox: Leadership, creative direction, brand strategy, graphic design, illustration, branding, copywriting, presentation, research.
Case Dakota: Graphic design, illustration, branding consultant, sensitivity consultant, research, facilitation, UX design, editing.
Case Dakota: Graphic design, illustration, branding consultant, sensitivity consultant, research, facilitation, UX design, editing.
Jack Whitehead: Leadership, motion design, maori narrative, cultural concept lead, lead facilitation, research.
Desmond Cheong: Motion design, lead research, documentation, photography, videography, cultural guidance, facilitation.
Jocelyn, Juvensco: Photography, videography.
A challenge in cultural design.
As student designers, we were committed to practicing cultural design respectfully.
Therefore, In order to make that experience honest, and true, we took manaakitanga and kaitiakitanga to heart, upholding them, so that they would guide our process;
Manaakitanga led us to collaborate with Māori mentors;
Therefore, In order to make that experience honest, and true, we took manaakitanga and kaitiakitanga to heart, upholding them, so that they would guide our process;
Manaakitanga led us to collaborate with Māori mentors;
Dr Jo Diamond, the Kaitakawaenga who inspired us to weave, and guided us through a respectful, iterative, design process.
Johnson McKay of Fly studio offered an entry point to us, as student designers and provided us with foundation knowledge in Māori representation and visual narrative.
These values also led us to the Ellen Melville Centre, a space that is open to a diverse community, and acts as a beacon of hospitality at the heart of Tāmaki Makaurau.
Kaitiakitanga inspired our solution; to engage with our natural resources by weaving harakeke. It inspired our practices; following harvest tikanga, and creating sustainable collateral by creating flexible pieces for future use, and minimising disposable print.
These values culminate as the heart of ‘woven’, a shared weaving table.
This table is a metaphorical gateway to Māori culture, a place to gather for first hand experience in Manaakitanga and Kaitiakitanga. Here visitors come face to face and shoulder to shoulder, and are guided to weave a simple ika (fish) out of harakeke. Through this process of learning as one, we are able to share in these values that weave us together.
Finally, as is tikanga Māori, participants give their first woven item away, taking the experience full circle, from receiving manaakitanga, to expressing it and gifting it onto a community weaving-based display board. By proudly displaying our ika in this way, we stand by these values together, and that unity grows stronger with every person who takes part.
This is Woven’s message; Manaakitanga and Kaitiakitanga are all about hospitality, community, and prosperity, offering a chance for the many peoples of Tāmaki Makaurau to experience Māori culture on a deeper level, and becoming a part of something bigger.
"Ko Ngāi Te Moana Whatu tātou: Together, we are a woven ocean."
